The present invention is directed to the field of bicycles, and more particularly, to a glove or similar device or attachment for the hand of a bicycle rider which engages and cooperates with a gear shift actuator mounted on the handlebar of the bicycle.
Mountain or off-road bikes are widely used for recreation and sport. A typical mountain bike includes front and rear chain derailleurs which move the chain among different sprockets to change gear ratios and thereby assist the rider in matching his power output to the load conditions. The front and rear derailleurs are typically controlled by respective cables which, in turn, are operated by shift actuators mounted on opposite ends of the handlebars. In other embodiments, the derailleurs may be controlled through hydraulic, pneumatic, or electronic operation rather than by cables.
One type of shift actuator is a twist type shifter, such as described, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,564,316 and 5,584,213, both to Larson et al. In addition to the basic twist shifting arrangement, these patents also discuss the need for providing a readily and comfortably gripped surface for the bare hand of the rider. In particular, each patent discloses a resilient material tubular grip with axially extending alternating patterns of ribs and grooves. The ribs and grooves are spaced such that they desirably fit naturally into the crooks of the rider""s thumb and finger or fingers and the portion of the palm therebetween.
The conventional twist grip shift actuators include a rotatable tubular portion that is grasped between the forefinger and thumb. Unfortunately, it may be difficult for the rider to retain a firm grip on the handlebar with the other three fingers of the hand while the forefinger and thumb grip and rotate the rotatable portion to shift gears. Typically, a rider must release his grip and slide his hand inward to grasp the rotatable portion to shift gears. It is often undesirable to release one""s grip from the handlebars, particularly for mountain biking.
Another embodiment of a shifter according to the prior art is offered by Shimano, for example, under the designation Rapid Fire. This arrangement typically uses two pairs of paddles or levers, one pair for each derailleur. One paddle of the pair advances the gearing, while the other paddle reduces the gearing. The paddle must be contacted and pressed by the thumb or forefinger of the rider to change gears. Again, the rider""s grip is released or at least weakened when shifting gears using the paddle type shift actuators.
In view of the foregoing background, it is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a device and associated method which permits the rider to maintain a secure grip on the handlebar, yet readily operate a twist type shift actuator.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a device and associated method which permits the rider to maintain a secure grip on the handlebar, yet readily operate a paddle type shift actuator.
These and other objects, features, and advantages in accordance with the present invention are provided by a bicycle gear shifting system including a rotatable shift member to be rotatably carried by handlebars of the bicycle and connected to the gear shifting derailleur, and a hand attachment to be carried by a hand of a rider, wherein the rotatable shift member and the hand attachment each have respective mating surfaces for positively engaging one another to facilitate gear shifting by the rider. In some embodiments, the mating surfaces may also provide ready releasability to permit the rider to change hand positions quickly.
More particularly, the mating surfaces may include pairs of corresponding recesses and projections. Each pair of corresponding recesses and projections may also be tapered to facilitate engagement and release in some embodiments. In one class of embodiments, the mating surfaces may engage in superposed relation upon radial squeezing of the hand of the rider. In another class of embodiments, the mating surfaces may engage in side-by-side relation based upon lateral positioning of the hand of the rider.
The hand attachment may include a gripping portion defining the mating surface. In some embodiments, the hand attachment may further include a flexible body portion for covering at least a portion of the hand of the rider and carrying the gripping portion. A reinforcing portion may be connected to the gripping portion and also carried by the flexible body portion. Additionally, the flexible body portion may include fabric, and the gripping portion may include plastic.
The hand attachment may further include at least one finger ring portion connected to the gripping portion. More specifically, the at least one finger ring portion may include a thumb ring portion and an index finger ring portion, and the gripping portion may extend between the thumb ring portion and the index finger ring portion.
The bicycle gear shifting system may further include a twist derailleur actuator carried by the handlebars, and the rotatable shift member may include portions for operating the twist derailleur actuator. Alternatively, the bicycle gear shifting system may include a paddle derailleur actuator carried by the handlebars, and the rotatable shift member may include a pair of paddle engaging portions for operating the paddle derailleur actuator.
A method aspect of the invention is for using a bicycle gear shifting system including a rotatable shift member rotatably carried by handlebars of the bicycle and connected to the gear shifting derailleur. The method may include placing a hand attachment on a hand of a rider, positively engaging respective mating surfaces on the rotatable shift member and the hand attachment, and rotating the rotatable shift member using the hand attachment to actuate the gear shifting derailleur. The respective mating surfaces may be readily releasable to permit the rider to change hand positions quickly.
A bicycle gear shifting system according to another embodiment of the present invention includes a paddle derailleur actuator carried by handlebars of the bicycle, and a hand attachment to be carried by a hand of a rider. The hand attachment may include a pair of paddle engaging portions for operating the paddle derailleur actuator.
Yet another method aspect of the invention is for using a bicycle gear shifting system comprising a paddle derailleur actuator carried by handlebars of the bicycle and connected to a gear shifting derailleur. The method may include placing a hand attachment including a pair of paddle engaging portions on a hand of a rider, engaging paddles of the paddle derailleur actuator with the pair of paddle engaging portions, and rotating the hand attachment to operate the paddles and actuate the gear shifting derailleur.
Yet another aspect of the invention relates to a bicycle gear shifting system comprising a gear shifting derailleur, a paddle derailleur actuator carried by handlebars of the bicycle, and a rotatable shift member to be rotatably carried by the handlebars of the bicycle and comprising a pair of paddle engaging portions for operating the paddle derailleur actuator. In other words, in accordance with this aspect, the invention may be considered as a converter for converting a paddle type actuator into a twist type actuator. The rotatable shift member may comprise plastic. In addition, the system may further comprise a hand attachment to be carried by a hand of a rider, and the rotatable shift member and hand attachment may each have respective mating surfaces for positively engaging one another.
The corresponding method aspect is directed to the method for converting a paddle derailleur actuator on handlebars of a bicycle into a twist derailleur actuator. The method may include rotatably positioning a rotatable shift member on handlebars of the bicycle and comprising a pair of paddle engaging portions for operating the paddle derailleur actuator.